Home sales hit slump in Wichita Falls

Drought, heat, economy take toll

Existing home sales here in September lagged behind the previous month and were off considerably from the same period a year ago.

The Wichita Falls Association of Realtors Multiple Listing Service reported that September home sales totaled 113, down 22 from 135 the previous month and 19 from September 2010.

September's sales volume was down $1.48 million from the previous month. It was $13.4 million. In August it was $14.88 million. September's sales volume was down $3.08 million from the same month a year ago.

The sales volume for the year stands at $114.54 million, down significantly ($25.99 million) from $140.52 million during the period last year.

Realtor Michael Detrick characterized 2011 as a tough year for his industry.

"This has been a surprisingly tough year in real estate. The drought and extreme heat have negatively impacted our economy," Detrick said. "This has been the year that the people employed in the public sector have worried about their jobs as schools and government balance their budgets in a tight economy.

"My contacts in the major metropolitan areas of our state have had a much better year than we have experienced here. They attribute their success in 2011 to low interest rates, rising wages, job growth and affordable housing prices. We have two of those components in place in the Wichita Falls area.

"I anticipate that we will see some improvement in the wages and job growth in 2012, which should help bolster our home sales."

Detrick also said there has been a downturn from military personnel coming into Sheppard Air Force Base.

"I believe one of the drags on the Wichita Falls market is the downturn from our military personnel coming into Sheppard," he said. "These buyers have always been an important part of our market and our community. They are not purchasing at historic rates for several reasons, including unsold properties from their previous duty station, lack of confidence to make a three- to four-year real estate investment and lack of confidence that they will actually complete their scheduled tour of duty at Sheppard without interruption.

"We can see this reflected in the numbers when you look specifically at the north side sector with lots and neighborhoods located close to the base."

Fellow Realtor Dee Ann Martin said she was surprised with the September numbers.

"With so much positive national and state press regarding the Wichita Falls market, and that the fact that our office had an exceptional September, I was a little surprised to see this small drop," she said. "Considering sales are historically somewhat slow in the fall is not unexpected.

"In my opinion, one of the compelling reasons for continued stable sales in our market goes back to the value of homes in this area and the unbelievably low interest rates."

Home sales for the year stand at 1,003, a decrease of 181 from 1,184 last year.

The average sales price here in September was $118,545, up $8,356 from $110,189 in August.

A sampling of price class sales included: five each in the $140,000 to $160,000 and $160,000 to $180,000 range, nine in the $200,000 to $250,000 range, four in the $300,000 to $400,000 range, and one in the $400,000 to $500,000range.